Two people have been killed and one injured during a third night of unrest in the US city of Kenosha, sparked by the police shooting of a black man.
Jacob Blake, 29, was shot and injured by police as he leaned into his car on Sunday, with his children screaming.
Tuesday night’s incident was believed to have involved protesters against Mr Blake’s shooting and armed men guarding a petrol station.
The protests have at times have turned violent, causing damage to property.
Mr Blake is in hospital. His lawyers say it will take “a miracle” for him to walk again.
In their statement, Kenosha Police said officials responded to “reports of shots being fired and multiple gunshot victims” in the city at about 23:45 on Tuesday (04:45 Wednesday GMT).”The shooting resulted in two fatalities and a third gunshot victim was transported to a hospital with serious, but non-life threatening injuries,” the statement said.It added that the identities of the victims were still being determined and that no further details would be given at this time. An investigation has been opened.Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth earlier told the New York Times that an investigation into the shootings would be focused on a group of men armed with guns outside a petrol station.
Footage shared online showed a man with a rifle being chased by a crowd before he fell to the ground and appeared to fire multiple rounds at them. Other video shows armed civilians, many dressed in military fatigues, congregating outside businesses they said they were protecting.
Previous protests have resulted in damage to government offices and private businesses, and there have been reports of vigilantes turning out to protect property.
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers said on Tuesday he was sending more National Guard troops to the city amid the unrest.
Media reports quoted White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows as saying Mr Evers had turned down an offer of federal support.
Officials in Mr Evers’ administration said the offer was for help from the Department of Homeland Security and had been turned down because more National Guard members were already on their way.
Within hours of Mr Blake’s shooting on Sunday, hundreds of people had marched on Kenosha’s police headquarters. Cars were later set alight, and police urged 24-hour businesses to consider closing because of “numerous” calls about armed robberies and shots being fired. A night-time curfew was imposed.
On Monday, Governor Evers called up the National Guard to help local police. The forces used tear gas, rubber bullets and smoke bombs, protesters said. Some demonstrators were seen attacking cars and property with baseball bats, Reuters reported.
On Tuesday, hundreds of protesters marched through the city. A small group threw fireworks and water bottles at police, who responded with rubber bullets and tear gas.
In a message posted on Twitter, police urged people in Kenosha, a city of about 100,000 on the south-western shore of Lake Michigan, to “stay off the streets”.
Buildings and cars have been burned.
A state of emergency has also been declared in Wisconsin.
Protests have also spread to a number of other cities, including Portland, Oregon and in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where the police killing of unarmed black man George Floyd in May sparked Black Lives Matter protests across the US and globally.
Source:Fiilafmonline/BBC
